WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Ceaseless
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Northern Grand Duke’s Mad Son-in-Law ◈
Chapter 58: Cheap
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‘Uh...’
Cromwell, the dark mage who had entered the Sanctuary with the Society Head, panted heavily.
The Society Head had run ahead like mad, leaving Cromwell far behind.
Cromwell could not look toward the Society Head.
The knight who had shut the gate was looking down at them.
Drawing their sword, the knight spoke.
“You lot are my share.”
Cromwell instinctively realized the knight was their opponent.
“Attack!”
Cromwell quickly began chanting.
“Good!”
The knight laughed heartily and drew their sword.
Aura blazed wildly along the knight’s blade. It looked more like fire than aura.
Cromwell swallowed hard.
There were thirty dark mages on their side.
No matter how strong the opponent was, they were only a knight. There was no way they could lose.
Still, the knight had been too intimidating when they shut the gate, so Cromwell did not let his guard down.
“M... mana won’t gather!”
Several people screamed. They had not received Selection.
‘Useless fools.’
Cromwell clicked his tongue and cast his spell.
“Burning Spear!”
The Burning Spear shot toward the knight. Other spells followed it like a signal flare.
All kinds of magic flew at the knight in an instant, enough to completely bury them.
Then Cromwell had a sudden thought.
A knight should have moved before the magic was cast...
Yet the knight did not move. They only adjusted their grip on the sword.
As though waiting.
“Come! Pain that will become my nourishment!”
The knight shouted something bizarre and thrust out their sword.
Flames covered the blazing aura. It was magic. As it blended with the aura, the aura burned even more fiercely.
The sword looked like a massive flame.
‘What is that...?’
The knight swung their sword in a wide arc.
Aura left the blade and moved like magic.
As though it had been fired.
‘They’re throwing aura? What the...’
Cromwell narrowed his eyes at the sight, something he had never seen before.
The flame-filled aura tore through the air.
That huge, violent aura swallowed the incoming spells.
No, it tore them apart.
Flames rose into the sky and spread wildly.
Everyone’s mouths fell open at that absurd display of power.
The fierce flames parted, and the knight approached.
“Ha ha ha! Good!”
Cromwell was truly afraid of the knight charging toward him with a laugh.
* * *
Thump!
Galahad’s heart pounded fiercely.
No, it was the Egg of Pain attached beside his heart that was shaking violently.
The Egg of Pain was showing greed fiercer than ever before.
It was enough to confuse whose desire it was.
‘Tch.’
Galahad clicked his tongue and steadied himself.
Thump! Thump!
The Egg of Pain poured out mana wildly.
Galahad frowned at the Egg of Pain, which would not settle down.
There was only one reason it was acting like that.
‘An egg.’
A massive egg hung from the end of the Society Head’s staff.
Galahad had not thought the Egg of Pain was especially valuable.
It had originally been in Corton’s hands. If it had been important, Corton would never have possessed it.
‘Does Dawn distribute them?’
Corton had received his from Dawn, so that was likely.
Whatever the case...
‘The reward has increased.’
Galahad curled his lips as he studied the Society Head.
Roots extending from the staff were embedded in the Society Head’s skeletal arm. They pulsed like a heartbeat.
They seemed to be drinking the Society Head’s blood.
The Society Head kept twitching as they stared at Galahad with blood-red eyes.
Like a dog with food set before it.
They seemed to be desperately restraining the egg’s urges.
‘A mage being led around by a tool.’
Clicking his tongue, Galahad opened his canteen.
The Society Head took a rough breath. For a moment, Galahad felt as if a foul smell had drifted through the air.
“You look delicious.”
“Thank you for the compliment.”
The moment the Society Head’s eyes narrowed slightly, Galahad snapped his fingers.
Something exploded in front of the Society Head. It was an Ice Spike Galahad had scattered earlier.
“A cheap trick...”
“Think of it as a greeting.”
The Ice Spike should have pierced the Society Head’s body.
Galahad reviewed what he had just seen. The Society Head’s reaction had definitely been slow, yet the spell had been blocked.
‘The Society Head didn’t react. Was it the egg?’
That was likely. It seemed to have more functions than Galahad’s egg.
The Egg of Pain thumped heavily.
At that moment, a red light rose from the Society Head’s stomach. Its shape was familiar.
It was the magic circle left behind by the First Mage.
It was more elaborate and larger than the ones carved into the others.
‘So that’s the real one. No wonder the others seemed a little crude...’
Galahad was not particularly interested. The magic circle he had carved was clearly more effective.
“Crushing Claw.”
The Society Head swung the staff.
‘Crushing Claw. What a ridiculous choice.’
Galahad frowned at that foolish decision.
The advantage of Crushing Claw was that it had no form.
Yet the Society Head was using Crushing Claw in a Demon Realm full of ash.
“Foolish.”
Galahad openly clicked his tongue.
The ash was pushed aside, taking the shape of an enormous claw. The claw rushed at Galahad.
“Good speed, too.”
Galahad snapped his fingers.
A thick barrier rose before him.
Thump. The barrier that stopped the claw shook violently, then collapsed in an instant.
‘Hmm.’
Galahad’s eyes gleamed. He twisted aside. The spell grazed him and clawed across the ground.
Screeech.
A sharp sound rang out as a long scar was carved into the earth.
“Good power, too.”
Galahad nodded as he carefully noted its reach.
“Insolent brat...”
The Society Head’s face twisted. Their wrinkles deepened, and their eyes turned even redder.
The Society Head drove the staff into the ground.
Thump. A small shockwave spread through the area.
The ash thickened at once.
The claw came flying again.
‘Give it to me.’
As though it had finally learned some manners, the Egg of Pain obediently released life force. The magic circle carved into Galahad’s wrist shone brilliantly.
He formed a barrier from compressed mana.
The claw struck the barrier. It quickly collapsed.
He had compressed the mana quite a bit, yet it had been pushed aside so easily.
‘That’s unexpected.’
The spell Galahad could not avoid grazed his waist. A burning pain ran through him.
The Society Head sniffed like a wolf that had caught the scent of blood. It was an ugly sight.
“Are you laughing or crying? You have so many wrinkles, it’s hard to tell. Ah, I see now. You were laughing.”
Galahad nodded as he reviewed what he had just seen.
“You talk too much.”
The Society Head swung the staff that had practically become part of their hand.
The invisible claw flew at Galahad again.
Galahad twisted his hand. The magic circle on his wrist shone, and the Egg of Pain released life force.
He did not stop there. He compressed the mana a little further.
This time, instead of a barrier, he sent out an identical claw.
The two claws collided in midair.
Galahad’s claw crumbled.
There was no sound.
The Society Head’s claw tore a long cut across Galahad’s shoulder.
Galahad frowned at the pain in his shoulder.
‘Strange.’
The Society Head and Galahad possessed similar things.
Both had a magic circle left behind by the First Mage, and both possessed a high-ranking Demonkin egg.
Yet there was such a difference between them.
‘Are they simply better at magic than I am? Impossible.’
Galahad shook his head.
No matter how wrinkled the Society Head’s face was, they could not be more skilled in magic than Galahad.
If they had been, they would have stood among the upper ranks of the Magic Tower Masters, or become a Magic Tower Master.
They would not have been the Society Head of the Dark Magic Society, driven into the north.
The cause was not Galahad.
Only one variable remained.
‘It was you.’
Galahad muttered, pressing a hand over his heart.
The Egg of Pain, which had been rampaging nonstop, abruptly stopped.
Its silence was affirmation.
Galahad sorted out the situation.
‘Eggs have grades.’
The egg hanging from the Society Head’s staff seemed to be of a higher grade than Galahad’s Egg of Pain.
Since Corton had possessed Galahad’s, that was only natural.
‘Is that why it had to be fed blood?’
Galahad put the canteen to his lips and frowned.
The Society Head’s roots were drinking their blood. Even if they were a mage, the mana in their blood could not exceed that of a Demonkin.
Yet the Society Head’s magic was denser than Galahad’s, even though Galahad was consuming Demonkin blood in real time.
The gap between the two eggs seemed greater than he had expected.
‘You were cheap.’
The Egg of Pain lightly bit his heart.
That seemed to be the right answer.
No wonder there had been such a difference in the eggs’ sizes.
“You can’t laugh now, can you?”
The Society Head sneered. Their eyes were red as though they were on fire. They looked quite vicious.
After comparing what each of them possessed again, Galahad’s situation was clearly unfavorable.
The Society Head had a larger, clearer magic circle from the First Mage, as well as a better egg than Galahad’s.
To be precise, their output was higher.
By quite a lot.
Output was an important factor in magic.
It was certainly a difficult situation.
Galahad liked difficult problems.
Calmly, Galahad considered his options.
He had already exchanged magic with the Society Head four times.
Four times was enough for Galahad to assess them.
The answer came quickly.
This was what Galahad always did.
* * *
The Society Head frowned while watching Galahad.
Galahad had clearly felt the difference between them, yet he had curled his lips as though he found it amusing.
“You’re too stupid to even recognize the difference.”
Excitement flowed through the staff, violently shaking the Society Head’s mind.
They wanted to rip out Galahad’s heart and eat it immediately.
The Society Head drove the staff into the ground again.
“Crushing Claw...”
As they chanted, they felt a strange chill.
Before the Society Head could realize it, their chant was cut off and the staff moved.
An invisible barrier surrounded them.
Tap. A small impact struck it.
Its form was clearly the basic spell, Mana Arrow.
Yet it did not have the power of a Mana Arrow.
The Society Head frowned at their trembling barrier.
“Of course I felt the difference. Do you think I’m Sir Gilbert?”
Galahad said something strange and snapped his fingers.
That chill came again.
Tap. It was Mana Arrow again.
The barrier shook slightly.
“Yes, your output is higher than mine. I’ll admit that.”
Galahad said something incomprehensible and snapped his fingers again.
The barrier shook once more.
Galahad’s Mana Arrows were quite threatening, but they could not pierce the barrier.
Then why was he smiling?
Tap. Another Mana Arrow struck it.
The interval was shorter than before.
Only then did the Society Head sense something strange.
‘Why is he casting magic so fast?’
No matter how basic it was, Mana Arrow was still magic.
It required a formula and a chant, yet Galahad kept firing them.
With nothing but a snap of his fingers.
Galahad intended to keep firing Mana Arrows without giving the Society Head a chance to cast magic.
‘He certainly knows how mages fight.’
This time was different, though.
The barrier was magic cast by the staff.
It remained even without the Society Head’s conscious control.
That made mana control difficult, but not impossible.
In other words, they could cast magic while maintaining the barrier.
‘Foolish brat.’
The Society Head curled their lips as they finished calculating.
‘He also has gaps between his spells.’
They intended to use those gaps.
The Society Head focused to their limit.
The moment a Mana Arrow struck the barrier...
“Crushing Claw.”
The Society Head chanted and struck down the staff.
Crushing Claw was the fastest spell they could use.
At that moment, Galahad’s Mana Arrow struck them. The barrier trembled slightly, but the Society Head’s concentration did not falter.
“Crushing Claw!”
The claw shot toward Galahad.
Because of the barrier, less mana had gone into the claw than before, but Galahad had just used Mana Arrow.
The difference was obvious.
‘My victory...’
The Society Head was certain of victory.
Then...
“Crushing Claw.”
Galahad chanted leisurely.
‘His casting speed really is monstrous.’
The Society Head admired him despite themself.
Still, that was all.
Galahad had been using Mana Arrow until just moments ago.
On top of that, the difference between them had been clear in their earlier clash.
The Society Head’s output was overwhelming.
The outcome was already decided.
Then Galahad’s claw collided with the Society Head’s.
Galahad’s claw held out longer than before, then vanished.
The Society Head’s claw was diverted ever so slightly.
It tore a long line through the air right beside Galahad.
Galahad did not even blink.
‘He changed its direction?’
Even after seeing the result, the Society Head could not believe it.
Their output was higher than Galahad’s.
Maintaining the barrier had weakened their spell, but Galahad had also been using Mana Arrow until moments ago.
Galahad should have had less mana to spare.
Yet the difference in output had narrowed.
It was not impossible.
If Galahad had focused and compressed his mana, he could increase a spell’s output.
But that required time to concentrate.
Then the Society Head’s barrier shook. They felt a strange sense of unease.
The Society Head realized what it was.
‘The Mana Arrows never stopped even once.’
It made no sense for Galahad to have used Mana Compression in the middle of that.
‘He’s using an egg too.’
Just as the Society Head’s egg was maintaining the barrier, Galahad’s egg must have been firing Mana Arrows.
Was that even possible?
They questioned it, but nothing else made sense.
There was the possibility of dual casting, but that sounded like something one would say as a joke.
He had to be using the egg.
‘Even so...’
The Society Head instinctively knew their egg was stronger.
Galahad’s Mana Arrows could not pierce the Society Head’s barrier.
Galahad’s claw could only divert the Society Head’s claw.
In the end, the Society Head would win.
It was nothing but a desperate struggle.
Clicking their tongue, the Society Head measured the timing again.
When the Mana Arrow struck...
Then they suddenly felt something strange.
A Mana Arrow should have struck by now...
“Crushing Claw.”
Galahad’s chant reached them.
So the best he could think of was striking first.
The Society Head clicked their tongue and chanted.
They had already prepared the spell, so the chant was quick.
“Crushing Claw...”
The two claws collided in the center.
Then the Society Head realized.
There were no Mana Arrows.
An egg was not something its owner could control.
Just as the Society Head could not adjust the mana flowing into their barrier.
Yet the Mana Arrows had stopped.
‘What...?’
The Society Head’s left hand rolled across the ground.
Then their eyes met Galahad’s.
Galahad’s eyes were calm.
Like a hunter’s.
“What use is a mage if they’re led around by a tool?”
The Society Head’s claw was pushed back.
What that meant was obvious.
‘It was dual casting?’
The pain reached them at last, and the Society Head let out a small scream.
“Now, let’s try again.”
Galahad’s calm voice was filled with excited laughter.
* * *
“Is this really all you’ve got?”
Galahad clicked his tongue as he looked down at the Society Head.
The Society Head looked up at Galahad with tears of blood streaming down their face. Their body shook violently.
Their already thin body had dried out further, to the point that they looked like a mummy.
The staff was embedded in the ground as though it had lost all strength. The egg at its end kept pulsing, seemingly drinking the Society Head’s blood.
Even as their own blood was being drained, the Society Head could not let go of the staff.
Because they were a mage.
Of course, the staff had already seized them, so they probably could not let go even if they wanted to.
“Uuuuugh...”
A tightly restrained voice leaked from the Society Head’s mouth.
“You can do a little more, can’t you?”
The Society Head’s body trembled violently at Galahad’s question.
The egg the Society Head possessed was certainly superior to Galahad’s.
That directly translated to output.
Output carried considerable weight in magic, but...
“It isn’t everything.”
Galahad crouched in front of the Society Head.
The Society Head looked closer to a Monster than a person.
‘A side effect of the egg?’
Galahad studied the Society Head with interest.
The Egg of Pain thumped violently. It urged him to take the one in the staff out and eat it at once.
‘Lowest-grade egg, be quiet.’
At Galahad’s biting words, the Egg of Pain trembled slightly. His chest squirmed, as though the Egg of Pain had turned its back on him.
“Tell me about Dawn.”
Galahad placed a hand on the Society Head’s head and whispered.
Mental interference was quite easy on someone as worked up as the Society Head.
“Dawn is...”
The Society Head’s mouth slowly opened. Loose teeth, mixed with red blood, fell to the ground.
The Society Head’s mouth moved on its own. Galahad focused on their words. A moment later, the dried-up Society Head’s head drooped.
‘Demonkin...’
For a Society Head, they did not possess much information about Dawn.
They knew that the one who had come from Dawn was a powerful Demonkin, that they had received an egg from it as proof, and...
‘That someone comes from Dawn periodically.’
That was the most important part.
The Dark Magic Society needed to keep operating.
Of course, Galahad had already intended to put them to work as productive laborers in the Magic Stone Mine.
If he waited according to the cycle, he could capture whoever came from Dawn.
Thump!
The Egg of Pain started thumping again. Galahad clicked his tongue and grabbed the staff.
The staff shook violently. He could feel its pulse. It whispered that it was superior.
The Egg of Pain urgently made its presence known. It pressed against Galahad’s heart like a massage.
‘Good. Keep going.’
The Egg of Pain diligently pressed against him. Galahad gave a small smile and gripped the egg.
“I’m sorry, but you’re too big.”
Galahad took a fork and knife from his pocket.
Footnotes:
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